Trains cancelled in Bihar amid Maoist shutdown

Patna: At least nine trains were cancelled and some diverted in Bihar in view of a two-day Maoist shutdown that began Monday, officials said.

The trains cancelled include the Patna-Barka Kana Singrauli Express, Barka Kana-Patna Express and the Singrauli-Garhwa Express, an official of the East Central Railway said.

Simultaneously, security forces went on high alert.

"An alert has been sounded in the state and adequate security arrangements are in place," Additional Director General of Police P.K. Thakur said.

Public transport was hit in some rural areas. A few long-route buses called off their services.

The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) has called a shutdown in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal to protest the arrest of two Maoists in Bihar - Sambhuji in Rohtas district and Kamruddin in Patna district.